Analysis Of Walt Whitman's Songs Of Myself

688 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Themes and symbols referred to in Whitman’s Songs of Myself

In “songs of myself” the author, Walt Whitman, views the relationship between life and death a little differently than most writers. Walt talks about death more positive than you would think. He sees it more as “a passage from one world to another”. A start of a new life for everyone. To him, the universe is not dead but filled with meaning and lots of life. The way Whitman describes his feelings and shows his passion towards death is unlike any other author, and how he includes god and explains reincarnation is very engaging. His inspiration for nature and the universe is astonishing and his fondness is simply pure. Walt Whitman starts off “Songs of myself” by proclaiming that we are all equal and the same, including slaves. Everything that is in him is in all off us as well. He states in passage one:
“And wat I assume u shall assume,
For every atom belonging to me, as good belongs to u”
We are all in this universe and life together. That there should be acceptance for all. He believes in universal togetherness. Whitman seems to use nature as his settings in his poems since he’s so inspired by it, for example in “Leaves of Grass”. He sees nature as bright and authentic and in it all he …show more content…

If u believe in life upon death and where our souls go when we depart, then there is still a long future ahead. He states that he has “died ten thousand times before “. He believes in the idea of reincarnation so to him dying isn’t scary. Death isn’t a bad thing since everything comes and goes. life and death are just one big continues cycle. In this life nothing is bad. The” bad” that exists contributes to something even bigger and better. Walt goes on to say that we cannot answer the big questions. The only person who can answer them is god himself. Therefore, Whitman is so opposed to the people that think they are preaching the truth. All truths are everywhere and in all things, however they are

Show More
Related

  • Song of Myself by Walt Whitmas

    1056 Words  | 3 Pages

    Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. Dover Thrift ed. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, 2001. Print.

    Read More

  • The Value Of Conformity In Walt Whitman's Song Of Myself

    1240 Words  | 3 Pages

    Whitman claims that “there was never any more inception than there is now…nor any more heaven or hell than there is now.” The remainder of the poem goes on to say that similar to the law of conservation of matter, the impending presence of any aspect of life is constant, driven only by humanities “procreant urge.” Yet rather than lazily labeling the variety of essential human traits such as youth, old age, sex and isolation; Whitman divides the world based upon his soul saying, “Clear and sweet is my soul, and clear and sweet is all that is not my soul.” While at first this may appear to be a weak dichotomy that is far too lenient of evil actions, Whitman continues to write of it that “lack one lack both.” This somewhat ambiguous statement becomes clarified when observed against the larger backdrop of the idea of the self which Whitman is attempting to paint. Essentially, without the awareness or experience of ideas or actions that are decidedly not a part of your soul, it is nearly impossible to construct a genuine personal and moral code. Just as without darkness there is no light, without a definition and example of what is wrong, identifying a correct moral path becomes infinitely

    Read More

  • Comparing Walt Whitman's Song To Myself

    629 Words  | 2 Pages

    Walt Whitman composed different versions of “Song to myself”, but 1881 is when the work was titled. Walt Whitman was born in 1819, lived in New York and New York city his whole life before dying in 1892. He was a big celebrator of humanity and believed in physical and spiritual essence. The overall meaning from “Song to Myself” was the poem progressing from life to death in a way that showed death is inevitable and should be embraced as an old friend. In a similar theme, Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” was composed in 1922, and talked about death as an escape from responsibilities rather than Whitman’s take as death being an old friend.

    Read More

  • Criticism Of Walt Whitman

    731 Words  | 2 Pages

    (A critique of Walt Whitman’s themes and ideas in Song of Myself 6, 46, 47)

    Read More

  • Walt Whitman's Song of Myself

    1767 Words  | 4 Pages

    Whitman signals from the beginning of this passage that it is more accessible than most of his others. The first line tells us simply of a question asked by a child: ?A child said, What is the grass? fetching it to me with full hands?? (90). In contrast to some of the earlier lines--the challenge of line 22 (?Have you reckoned a thousand acres much? Have you reckoned the earth much??) or the confusion of lines 30-31 (?I have heard what the talkers were talking?.the talk of the beginning and the end,/but I do not talk of the beginning and the end?.?) --this information is easy to process. We are likely

    Read More

  • You Must Find Out For Yourself By Walt Whitman Analysis

    547 Words  | 2 Pages

    Poet and journalist Walt Whitman was born May 31, 1819, in West Hills, New York. He is known to be particularly one of America’s most influential poets. Whitman aimed to transcend traditional heroic poems and demonstrate nature of the American experience and his style reflects his distinctiveness. In Walt Whitman’s excerpt #46 of “Song of Myself,” the theme of celebrating yourself in all your faults and glory along with showing that no one else can travel the road for you, you have to do it yourself is shown with the use of literary and sound devices. Walt Whitman isn’t worried about what else is in the universe. He can’t be dignified. His journey will go on forever and all he needs is a good raincoat and a pair of shoes. He does not want to be anyone’s teacher or professor, he just wants to show you the world. At the same time, all he can do is show you the road, you have to walk down it. If you get tired, he’ll support you. Even if he see’s the entire world and universe, he’d still want to travel beyond further and see more things. He reiterates the non conformist system of belief,...

    Read More

  • Walt Whitman's Influence on Germany

    5654 Words  | 12 Pages

    Walt Whitman (1819-1892) is considered to be one of the greatest American poets of the nineteenth century. While Edgar Allan Poe may have been more widely read, Whitman had more international writers actively respond to him and his poetry than any other American poet. A century after his death, writers around the world are still in dialogue with him, pondering the questions he posed, arguing with him and elaborating on his insights. People have been attracted to Whitman for numerous reasons. For his time he was truly unconventional and introduced the modern lyric with his autobiographical collection of prose poems called Leaves of Grass. The impact Whitman has, however, exceeds technical innovation; it lies in his universal appeal.

    Read More

  • Individuality in Whitman's Song of Myself

    1259 Words  | 3 Pages

    *Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. 3rd ed. Ed, Paul Lauter. Boston,NewYork: Houghton Mifflin, 1998.

    Read More

  • Identities and Transcendentalism in Song of Myself by Walt Whitman

    830 Words  | 2 Pages

    ... a much bigger picture such as a lawn. Whitman also shows the each of our self-identities are vital to the universal identities when he writes about growing among different races and groups. Again, he is telling us that even though we are our own entire person, we are equal. No man is greater than anyone else. Whitman shows his transcendentalism side here because to come to this conclusion that grass is so much more than just grass, he had to look deeper than his senses or his logical knowledge of grass. Sight, taste, touch, smell, or sound couldn’t have helped him answer the boy’s question. Taking classes on the importance of grass could not have accomplished this either. Whitman shows here that a person must look inside themselves and see what their soul is telling them because at times, it can provide infinitely more wisdom than a scholar or a book ever could.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Emily Dickinson And Walt Whitman

    722 Words  | 2 Pages

    The poem has set a certain theme and tone but no definite rhyme. In this poem, the poet explores into a thought of the self, the all-encompassing "I," sexuality, democracy, the human body, and what it means to live in the modern world. He addresses that the human body is sacred and every individual human is divine. Hence, Whitman was known for writing poems about individualism, democracy, nature, and war.

    Read More

  • Comparing The Self In Walt Whitman's Song Of Myself

    731 Words  | 2 Pages

    Walt Whitman used free verse in “Song of Myself” in order to connect with the common man and his American readers. In this first person narrative, Whitman deconstructs the “self” into many different sections that all are a part of the celebration of the individual. Some of the topics he breaks the “self” into are self- identity, and human exploration (including the human body and sexuality). In the poem, Whitman uses a speaker to exclaim that for individuals to grow they must discover themselves spiritually, physically, and mentally. The speaker in the poem

    Read More

  • Individuality And Democracy In Walt Whitman's Song Of Myself

    1276 Words  | 3 Pages

    The poet was fascinated with the realization that masses of unique individuals construct a single democracy under which everyone is amalgamated. As aforementioned, this paradoxical concept of individuality coexisting with unity and equality is evident in “Song of Myself” (Chase 132). Whitman believed the theme of unity is a common link embracing all humanity. Whitman also felt that “one of the founding beliefs of American democracy is the fundamental equality of all people” (Casale 49). In “Song of Myself,” the people portrayed as a collection of distinct individuals with their own soul and

    Read More

  • Literary Devices used in Walt Whitman´s Poem Song of Myself

    1599 Words  | 4 Pages

    Explication Through a multitude of literary devices and techniques, Walt Whitman's poem, "Song of Myself," is one of his most famous contributions to American literature. He uses simile and metaphor, paradox, rhythm, and free verse style, to convey his struggle between the relation of the body and soul, the physical and the spiritual being. He continues to disobey all social restrictions of the romantic time period. From the beginning, Whitman begins by stating, "What I shall assume, you shall assume, for every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you," proposing that the reader listen to him, for he possesses all of the answers to life. The setting is somewhat naturalistic, and offers an image of the speaker, relaxing, possibly sprawled out across a blanket, philosophizing about life, while in the middle of a peaceful meadow. As the poem later shifts in tone, and setting, Whitman starts to think about the answers to life he has come up with, based upon the past, and decides that the reader should hear him out, one final time, as his ideas have changed. This brings us to #44 of "Song of Myself." In section #44 of, "Song of Myself," Whitman's first stanza begins: "It's time to explain myself…let us stand up. What is known I strip away…I launch all men and women forward with me into the unknown. The clock indicates the moment…but what does eternity indicate? Eternity lies in bottomless reservoirs…its buckets are rising forever and ever, they pour and they pour and they exhale away." Whitman is simply stating that he wants to tell the purpose of his madness. The madness that Whitman expresses is that of power and self-confidence. Whitman has written this based upon his experiences in life. Through these experiences, he has grown to know certain things about life and tries to pass them down to the reader. Throughout the beginning of the poem, Whitman takes the reader by the hand and demands that he follows Whitman and his ideas, because based on his own life Whitman holds the answers to the reader's questions. But now, he asks the reader to erase everything that he has previously said - forget the past. Why don't we try something new? We have to focus on the present, not on the past, but also to focus on what we are going to experience in the future, what can we expect?

    Read More

  • On The Beach At Night Alone By Walt Whitman

    359 Words  | 1 Pages

    Although Whitman uses a great deal of structural ways to stress his ideas, he also uses many other ways of delivering his ideas. First of all, Whitman portrays himself as a public spokesman of the masses. The tone of the poem is a very loud, informative tone that grabs ones attention. The emphasis placed on the word “all” adds to the characterization of Whitman as a powerful speaker. Furthermore, Whitman takes part in his own poem. Participating in his own poem, Whitman moreover illustrates the connection between everything in life. Lastly, Whitman, most of all, celebrates universal brotherhood and democracy.

    Read More

  • Walt Whitman: The American Poet

    1559 Words  | 4 Pages

    As Whitman, the specific individual, melts away into the abstract, “Song of Myself” explores the possibilities for communion between individuals. Whitman addresses the reader in a particularly direct manner. He integrates his reader into the poem, and is freed of the constraints of poetic principle and social etiquette. The poem presents entire body lounging on the ground, leaning and idling. Whitman deliberately conflates natural world and poetical world. “Song of Myself” goes beyond the boundaries of Transcendentalism in the relationship of the physical and spiritual, individual and universal. The self that Whitman cheerily sings and celebrates substantiates a ‘uniform hieroglyphic’: suggestive, multiform, and awash with inconsistency. “It is as much a physical presence as a projected spiritual possibility” (Jason 2). Even as it blatantly and fervently expresses Whitman’s faith in evolution (and therefore in the necessary indivisibility of self-reliance), “Song of Myself” also conveys a separation with the “self,” the poet himself, and the co...

    Read More

More about Analysis Of Walt Whitman's Songs Of Myself

Open Document